Coble should resign over AJA comments

U.S. Sen. Trent Lott stepped down from his leadership post after his discriminatory public comments, but U.S. Rep. Howard Coble of North Carolina stubbornly refuses to take responsibility for his outrageous and uneducated comments concerning the internment of Japanese Americans. Coble stated that the internment was justified because of national security and a supposed desire to protect Japanese Americans.

Rep. Mike Honda -- who spent his early childhood in an internment camp -- tried to educate his colleague, to no avail. Under the scrutiny of subsequent media attention, Coble later issued a non-apology, merely expressing his "regret that many Japanese and Arab Americans found [his] choice of words offensive because that was certainly not [his] intent."

So what's the big deal? Coble is the chairman of the House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security. "With his leadership position in Congress, that kind of lack of understanding can lead people down the wrong path," said Honda.

The internment was based on war hysteria and racial stereotypes; its implementation demonstrated a failure of political leadership. We must hold our leaders to higher standards. Coble, too, should resign.

David M. Forman

Hamakawa, Arakaki should not have voted

It's incredible that legislators have the ability to kill bills on behalf of their "special interest" constituency. Rep. Hamakawa will kill the cockfighting bill because he has "a lot of cockfighting constituents," despite overwhelming testimony by supporters (Star-Bulletin, Feb. 10). Rep. Arakaki has acted similarly with a bill that would authorize the Department of Health to conduct unannounced inspections of care homes because a large proportion of care-home operators live in his district. Testimony in support of that bill also was overwhelming.

If Hamakawa or Arakaki were representing districts in which a conflict of interest did not exist, those bills would have passed without incident. Why don't legislators excuse themselves from voting on measures if a conflict of interest exists and allow the issue to be decided on the floor? They have an ethical and moral responsibility to act in the best interests of the people of Hawaii.

Arezu Maluafiti
Ewa Beach

Willie shines on crowd at Waikiki concert

A Waikiki shell full of Willie Nelson fans was wowed Saturday night, Feb. 8, by one of the top country-and-western entertainers of our time. Willie Nelson did what he's been doing for about 50 years; he shined.

Unlike some entertainers, he did not keep the crowd waiting and waiting. When 7:30 p.m. came, he was on stage and welcoming his fans. Without a break, and with few pauses, he kept us spellbound with a full two hours of the songs we love to hear, such as "On the Road Again" and "Pancho and Lefty."

It was a rousing, professional performance. Come again soon, Willie.

Jim Gilbert

Zoo Society working for better facilities

Mayor Harris's mention of the possible privatization of the Honolulu Zoo in his State of the City address was a promising start to what I hope will be a renewed commitment by the city to transform our zoo into a facility we can all be proud of. However, things seemed to get off to a rocky start at last week's City Council committee hearing on Resolution 03-33, which would initiate a public-private partnership with the Honolulu Zoo Society to manage the zoo.

As I listened to the testimony in opposition to the resolution, I was disappointed that the Council was not able to hear from the many people who support the work of HZS: volunteers who donate their time to support the zoo society's mission; families that participate in the educational programs; generous donors who have provided monetary and in-kind gifts; and schoolchildren who enjoy educational tours.

Furthermore, from the questions posed by the Council members, it appears that the role and responsibility of the Zoo Society was being confused with city obligations. The majority of the problems with zoo operations attributed to HZS actually had more to do with city decisions and issues that HZS has no control over.

I urge anyone who cares about the Honolulu Zoo to get involved. If you support the society, let us know. If not, don't just sit back and grumble or point fingers. Let's work together for meaningful discussion and change, and a bright future for the Honolulu Zoo.

Jennifer Barrett

Honolulu Zoo Society volunteer

Pre-emptive strike would create problems

We are writing to express opposition to a pre-emptive military strike against Iraq, especially in the absence of U.N. support. Such a strike would forever change and damage the standing of the United States among the nations of the world.

Iraq is well contained and has not attacked the United States in any significant way. For the United States to attack Iraq can only be seen as aggression, serving either a personal vendetta or oil-hungry imperialism.

No matter what the United States says, attacking Iraq will be seen as an attack against the larger Islamic nation. The United States likely would be drawn into the same kind of endless cycle of violence and retaliation seen between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

Because of other tensions in the Middle East, India, Korea, Columbia and elsewhere, there is a real potential for this conflict to trigger terrorism and warfare in multiple sites around the globe. We have avoided World War III for nearly 60 years, but for how much longer?

David H. Friar Pamela S. Matsuda
Kaneohe

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